The Chain
by Konie
Summary: What would happen if the G-boys were able to learn about their pasts and meet their mothers? How would the pilots react to living together in a haunted house? Find out in Konie's first thriller, The Chain!!
1. The Chain, Chapter One

"The Chain"  
  
Introduction: by Madame deLune  
I wrote this before I actually did research on the characters…(I know, stupid move…)  
so some of the things will be inaccurate, so I do not need to be told…and I will keep them the same throughout, so as to not damage the continuity of the story… Thanks!!  
You may notice that the Parts are named after songs, (don't worry, this isn't a songfic, I hate those things! No offense meant!) I just felt that in a roundabout and metaphorical way, those songs had something with either the character themselves or the things that they face in that part. The title of this fic is The Chain, also a song. This is meant to imply that the friendship of the boys is like a chain, strong and true. (Also, I love the song!!)  
  
Prelude:  
  
"Wufei, you know I must go! Do not try to make me stay! I must fight, fight for our freedom!"  
  
"But, Nataku, I feel something different for this mission, I want you to stay here with me…"  
  
"Wu-chan, you know I can't," she said, affectionately stroking his cheek. "I have my destiny and you have yours!! I must fight, and you will still learn! You will lead our colony someday!"  
  
"No, I know my Fate is not that, I have seen visions, horrible, bloody battle, and I am the cause!"  
  
"Wu-chan, you know that you couldn't really kill anyone, hell, you get angry when I have to!"  
  
"I know that, but I also know that my visions are correct! And, I don't really want you to go!" he yelled, pounding his fist onto (and through) the table for emphasis.   
  
"Wufei Chang, you know I must go!" and with that, the young girl, ran out the door, her long black hair trailing behind her.   
  
"Nataku! Please, come back!" he pleaded, reaching out, but she was already gone…  
  
The scene then shifts to a few weeks after the previous image…  
  
Wufei, sitting cross-legged in his bedroom, reading (so what's new?). 'I wonder what's been going' on…' He casually turns on his news monitor. A familiar reporter is immediately shown on the small screen.  
"It appears that there has been another attack on the Lunar Base by the people of the colonies! We're here, live, waiting for the action! (MS appear onto the screen) Look! There's the leader, in the Libra Mobile Suit!"  
  
Glancing up, Wufei notices the screen and scene really, for the first time. 'Is that…Nataku?'  
  
A video window appears on the screen, it's the same black-haired woman that we saw before…"Everyone, this is for the colonies!!!!!!!!!" she yelled, before piloting her suit straight for the Lunar Base. Just as quickly, a flash appears from the base, filling the entire space, instantly taking out any and everything in it's path. The screen turned to snow, and the transmission ended  
  
"Na-nataku? Dead? How can this be? Just as she and I were, just as…NO!!"  
______________________________________________________________  
  
"The Chain"  
  
Part 1: I Go To Extremes…(Duo)  
Section 1  
  
"Call me a joker, call me a fool,  
Right at this moment I'm totally cool,  
Clear as a crystal, sharp as a knife,  
I feel like I'm in the prime of my life…"  
  
By Madame deLune  
__________________________________  
  
  
"Mr. Chang, are you alright? Mr. Chang?" a quiet voice snapped him out of his prison of memory.  
Immediately putting on his aire of aloof-ness, Wufei faked anger, and said, "Of course I'm alright, Quatre, and stop calling me 'Mr. Chang'. It's getting damned annoying."  
  
"Y-yes, Mr.-, er, Wufei." Quatre stammered.  
  
"Wufei, Quatre was only seeing how you were, there was no need to be angry. You and Quatre are both vitally important to our group." Heero stated from his position leaning against the wall.  
  
Quatre looked surprised, Heero, defending him? "Heero…" Quatre sighed.  
  
Looking over to the blonde, "What?"  
  
Just then, a certain braided boy comes bounding into the room, practically tripping over the cords strewn about the floor, "Hey! Wu-man!! Waz up!"  
  
"Don't call me 'Wu-man'. Can none of you get my name right?"  
  
"Okay, Wu-man! Sheesh! Hey! Heero!" Duo said, bounding over to Heero, placing his arm around the other boy's strong shoulders.  
  
Heero gave him a look, but said nothing.  
  
"How are you doing today, buddy?" Duo asked Heero, getting right up next to his face.  
  
Heero simply looked at him, but voiced no reply.  
  
"Uh-huh…ok…Quatre!" Duo said, now clinging to Heero's arm, "What're you up to?"  
  
Heero said nothing.  
  
Quatre smiled, "Oh I'm just fine, Duo, thanks for asking J. How are you doing?"  
  
"Ah..I'm great!"  
  
"That's wonderful, I take it your day is going well?"  
  
"Of course, when doesn't it?" Duo said, with a huge grin, still clinging to Heero's arm.  
Wufei took one look at them, "You're hiding something." Heero seemed surprised at this. 'What could he possibly know?'  
  
Duo, who hadn't lost his composure, (when does he?) said…"Well, yeah, I was gonna wait until Trowa got here, and all of us were together… Hey, where IS Trowa?" he said, looking around.  
  
Quatre looked around also, " Not here, I guess…" he said, with a frown on his face…  
  
Duo, finally letting go of Heero's arm, started to dig around in his pockets. After a bit of searching, he found what his quest had been for, a set of 5 little white pieces of paper.  
  
"What?" Heero asked since he's not really a man of many words.  
  
Grasping what Heero meant, Duo explained, "These are tickets I won on a radio show"  
  
Waving his hand in the air like a schoolchild, Quatre asked, "What are the tickets for?"  
  
Even Wufei was curious, "Yeah, Braid-Boy, what are they for?"  
  
"Well…"Duo started, waiting for a while for dramatic tension, "These guarantee a week in a mansion for me and 4 of my friends!"  
  
"Duo, I already have a mansion, and you all know that you all are welcome to stay over at any time." Quatre said.  
  
"Yeah, but-"  
  
Just then, Trowa had entered the room, silently, as usual. Quatre simply smiled, "Hey, Trowa, want to sit down?" he asked, jumping up from his chair.  
  
"Thank you." Trowa said, sitting down. Heero, Duo, and Wufei watched this exchange curiously.  
Leaning over to Heero's ear, Duo whispered, "I know Quatre's nice, but that nice?" Heero understood, and nodded.  
  
"Hey, Maxwell, go on about the tickets." Wufei requested (or would it be ordered?).  
  
"Okay! Well, these tickets get my friends and I into the mansion for a week!"  
  
"You've said that already." Heero stated.  
  
"Yeah, but that's important." Duo explained, using his number one cute grin. (Hehe)  
  
For once, Trowa spoke up…to his and Quatre's dismay…"What's the big deal with spending a week at a mansion? I do that all the time" Just realizing what he said, he blushed.  
  
And was met with a somewhat angry glance from Quatre and confused glances from the guys, especially from Wufei.  
  
"Well, anyway…" Duo continued, nonplused, "This mansion is supposedly haunted!"  
  
"So?" Heero asked.  
  
"If we spend the entire week there, we each get a million dollars, right?" Wufei asked, sarcastically.   
  
"Uh, something close to that…you see…if we get proof of the ghosts, we each get 2 million dollars." They all sat there for a moment, thinking, and Trowa (!!?!) actually broke the silence, with, "What kind of proof?"  
  
Quatre answered with, "Probably something that can be proven to not be a fake, right?"  
  
"Like a picture, or video?" Duo asked.  
  
"No, even those can be falsified." Heero explained.  
  
"Then what?" Wufei asked.  
  
"Duo…" Quatre started…"Since you said that you were taking 4 friends, who did you mean?"  
  
"No one really…" he started, waiting for dramatic effect, "except for my best friends in the world!"  
Wufei gave him a sad and puzzled look. "I mean you too, Wu-man.." he said gently.  
"You think that I actually care?"  
  
"Yeah! I think you do!!"  
"Well, that shows what you know!" Wufei said, pulling out a knife.  
  
"Enough fighting, both of you!" Quatre almost yelled, "Haven't we done enough of that already?!?"  
  
"Yes, Quatre's right, we have fought enough, let's have some fun and enjoy ourselves." Heero (?!?) said.  
  
This, needless to say, surprised all of the Gundam Boys…"Heero, my man, you're been around me WAY too long!" Duo said, smiling. Soon, Heero found himself smiling too, but then he noticed that there were more people than just he and Duo in the room, so he stopped. 'This is getting weird! What's going on between Heero and Duo, and Trowa and Quatre?' Wufei thought, trying to analyze the situation.  
  
"Anyways, we'd all better be packing!!" Duo called out, grinning like a Cheshire Cat.  
  
"Why?" the rest of the pilots said in concert.  
  
"We're there tomorrow!!"  
  
"So much for notice…" grumbled Wufei.  
  
_________________________________  
  
  
"The Chain"  
  
Part 1: I Go To Extremes…(Duo)  
Section 2 (Quatre's Dream)  
  
"Call me a joker, call me a fool,  
Right at this moment I'm totally cool,  
Clear as a crystal, sharp as a knife,  
I feel like I'm in the prime of my life…"  
  
By Madame deLune  
__________________________________  
  
So, each of the boys spent the night at Quatre's mansion on Earth, so it'd be easier to leave together the next morning…  
  
In his room, Quatre already had his things packed, and of course, his violin included. Inspite of being ready, he couldn't calm himself to get to sleep. ' I wonder what tomorrow will be like? And the mansion? And being there, in constant contact with each of the guys?'  
Crawling out from under his sheets, our blonde friend walked to the end of his bed and grabbed his violin, and started to play. After a while, he was getting tired, playing his violin always made him feel better! Tired, he wearily crawled back into his bed and fell into a fast, deep sleep.  
  
+++++++Dream Sequence Alert! +++++++  
"Quatre…Quatre…" A young blonde woman stood at the end of the bed, calling his name. Sitting up in his bed, he asked, "What's going on, who are you?"…"Quatre…" she said, and tears sprang to her eyes. "What's wrong?" "Oh, Quatre…"  
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++  
"Quatre! Quatre!" a male voice sounded, the woman faded away…  
"Quatre! Wake up!" Bolting up, Quatre awoke from his dreamland. "Quatre, you've had me worried, I've been trying to wake you up for the past half-hour! Do you always sleep this deeply?" Trowa, said, with obvious concern in his voice. "You've been here for a half-hour?" Trowa nodded. Looking around, Quatre could see no trace of the pretty blonde woman. "What are you looking for, a ghost?" "I don't know, probably nothing, nothing at all…" "Anyway," Trowa said, getting off the side of the bed, "even though you do look cute in your PJ's, the guys'll probably expect you to be wearing something different."  
Blushing, Quatre replied, "You're probably right…I'll go and get dressed." And so, he went to his chest of drawers, grabbing his usual pink shirt and khakis, but decided to be a bit daring, "Hey, Trowa…" he started, pulling out another outfit, "what do you think of this?" Trowa's jaw dropped, to probably floor level. "I think it'd look really great, but that's so different from your norm." "Well, I'll be back in a moment!" Quatre said, skipping off to his dressing room. In his absence, Trowa looked around. Noticing that the violin was out of its case, he assumed that Quatre had a long night, needing the violin for comfort. 'Lucky me, I'm bringing my flute, so maybe while we're there, we can play some more duets?' he thought, remembering the first time that he and Quatre had met, and played some sweet music.   
After a bit of pacing, sitting, more pacing, and more sitting, Quatre finally emerged, with the new outfit of his choice. Leather pants and jacket, with a light blue shirt!  
"What took so long?"  
"I couldn't really figure out how to get it on…" he replied, reddening at the cheeks. It was then that Trowa noticed the pants were terribly tight! "Oh Quatre, what am I going to do with you?" "Love me?" "Don't I already?" "Of course!" "Anyway, we'd best be going, are you sure that you can walk?" "Uh-huh, for you, I'd do anything." Trowa went and grabbed the suitcase off the bed. "You don't have to carry that, I can" "I want to, Quatre" And with that, Quatre followed the bang-impaired-boy out the door and out to his car. A 1975 blue mustang (An antique, remember this is AC 195). Much to his surprise, all the guys were already piled in!  
"Lookin' sharp there, Sleeping Beauty! Nice of you to finally join the world of the living!" Duo yelled as soon as he saw Quatre emerge. Then, he wished he hadn't, because he felt a rather hard elbow jab his side. "Shut up, Maxwell! You slept nearly as long as Winner did!" Wufei pointed out, with a slight grin. 'Ahh…the justice of it all…'  
Thinking of no comeback, Duo just sat there, dumbfounded. Meanwhile, Quatre had climbed into the passenger seat, and Trowa had loaded Quatre's things into the trunk. (Sans the violin, Quatre clutched that to his chest, protectively) After Trowa had gotten in, and turned on the car, the "discussion" for the radio began…  
  
"I want folk music!!!!!" Wufei yelled into Duo's face.  
"And I want rock and roll!!!!!" Duo yelled back into Wufei's face.   
"And I wouldn't mind classical…" Quatre said, but that fell onto deaf ears, since no one could really hear him, thanks to Wufei's and Duo's yelling.  
Heero just sat there, staring out his window. Trowa wasn't even really paying attention to anything but the road, and meanwhile, Quatre had turned the radio to classical. 'I wonder why there are still radio broadcasts around?' he thought.  
After about an hour, Duo noticed that the radio was on and playing classical! "Quatre, you old dog you!!!" Duo said, playfully hitting his comrade on the back.  
"It doesn't really matter what the radio is playing." Heero said, not taking his eyes off the scenery outside. 'Outside is so much more interesting than in here!'  
"What do you mean, Heero?" Quatre asked.  
"We're here." Trowa answered for him, and pulling up into the long dark gravel driveway. Even though the sun was high in the sky, light rarely made it past the leaves and branches of the many trees covering the way.  
"Man…freaky…" Duo said, with obvious awe.  
"It's like night…" Quatre added, with the same feeling in his voice.  
Recovering his composure, Duo slipped over to Heero's ear, "Hey, Heero, do you know what's fun to do in the dark?" he whispered, not without a hint of something in his voice.  
"…"  
"Be that way then…" Duo said, pretending to feel hurt.  
"Let's be going" Wufei said, jumping out his door, and going to the trunk to pick up his things.  
"Shouldn't we get out at the door?" Quatre asked.  
"No, Quatre, Wufei's right," Trowa answered, getting his and Quatre's things from the trunk, "We may need to get out in a hurry, and may have to hide the car."  
Heero nodded, and also getting out held the door open.  
"Why thank you, my good kind butler!" Duo said, walking out the door, with an obvious grin on his face.  
"Hn."  
Trowa, Quatre, and Wufei all exchanged the same glance, 'Heero, being nice?'  
And so, the boys continued their way on foot, with the mansion looming in their vision. Almost the entire way, it was silent, except for the occasional "ow!" from Duo, who kept on poking Heero, who retaliated by punching the object of his aggression. This went on until the boys made it to the doors, where they were greeted by a nervous little man in a suit. "W-what took you so long?"  
"Sorry, we decided to get some exercise and decided to walk about half the driveway." Duo explained.   
"Well, your instructions are that you are to be locked into the mansion, no contact from the outside world for a week. Got that? Good. Bye!" said the man, running off.  
"Wait!" Quatre yelled, but to no avail, the man had already driven off.  
__________________________________  
"The Chain"  
  
Part 1: I Go To Extremes…(Duo)  
Section 3 (The House)  
"Call me a joker, call me a fool,  
Right at this moment I'm totally cool,  
Clear as a crystal, sharp as a knife,  
I feel like I'm in the prime of my life…"  
  
Madame deLune  
__________________________________  
  
Wufei was the first into the house, already waiting in the hall, "You guys coming?" The other boys pushed their way in, only to stand in the hall gawking.   
"We get to stay here?!" Trowa amazed. The place was huge! In the hall alone, you could fit over 200 people!! Heero was the only one not gawking (well, not really) and so he went to look around.  
"Hey. Look what I found." Heero called from the receiving room. The three still in the hall made their way to Heero, and after a bit of searching, found him.  
"What is it, Heero?" Quatre asked. Heero held a small piece of paper in his hand.  
"Let me see!" Duo wailed, lurching for the paper.  
Heero easily pulled it out of Duo's grasp, like a matador enticing a bull.  
*CRASH*   
We then see a broken chair, it tried to break Duo's fall, poor thing…  
"Oww…" Duo moaned, clutching his head. With Duo on the ground, Heero had given the paper to Quatre, who read it out loud…  
"Hello, and welcome to the winner (s) of out contest 'The Stupidest Thing Your Friends Have Ever Done!' Duo Maxwell, you and your four friends are to spend a week in this Haunted Mansion. If you get proof of the spectres, you get 2 million dollars each! Good luck to you all! Love, Your Friends at 105.6"  
  
Recovering quickly, Duo got up and ran to the nearest door, "Come on! Let's go exploring!"  
And so, the other boys followed, with Heero leading the safari for Duo. After some searching, they found him lounging on a bed and listening to his music. Searching the rooms nearby, they discovered that there were only four bedrooms on that level. "I'll sleep somewhere else." Heero volunteered.  
"No, Heero, we need to be somewhat together," Wufei said, "There's safety in numbers."   
Coming out of his room, Duo understood what to say next, to cause Wuffie the most embarrassment.   
"So, what you're saying, Wu-man, is that we need to stay in the same room?"   
Before Wufei could react, Quatre stepped in, "Actually, Duo, Wufei, that's a great idea! That way, we can all keep an eye on each other!"  
"W-what?!?" Duo uttered, taken aback, "I was only joking!" And with that, all the boys barged into Duo's already-staked-out-claim.   
"I get the corner."  
"I get the sofa."  
"I get the bed."  
"I'll take the floor!"  
Duo just stood there at the door, that is, until Heero came and pulled him in…  
  
A few hours later…  
Everyone was settled in, with Wufei in the corner, Trowa on the sofa, Quatre on the floor (in front to the sofa), Heero on the bed, and Duo, who sat on the bed, wondering where he was to sleep. 'Heero has the bed…" he thought glumly.  
"Why not sleep on the floor with me? There's plenty of room!"  
"I'll let you have the sofa…" Trowa offered.  
"No thanks guys, that's nice Trowa…" Duo muttered.  
"Or, you can do as you originally planned and sleep on this bed." Heero said.  
"But aren't you going to stay on the bed?" Quatre asked.  
"Yes." Heero answered, "I'm willing to share."  
"Are you sure that's such a good idea Yuy? Maxwell might kill ya in your sleep." Wufei called from his 'fort' in the corner (which was made with chairs, sheets, and pillows).  
"I happen to think that it's a good idea, Heero," Quatre said, "It just shows how much we've influenced each other!" ___++++I did not mean that they'd influence why Wufei had a fort…. (Brought to my attention by my sister, Bunny)++++____  
"Even though some things will always stay the same." Duo pointed out.  
"Yes, he's right. Trowa will always be the silent, strong type, Quatre will still apologize for everything and look like a 10-year-old, Wufei will always prefer to battle alone than with us, and Duo will always be the joker, an endless bundle of energy, always taking everything to the extreme." Heero said.  
"And what about you?" Duo asked.  
"I don't know." Heero said, smiling. And they all sat there, happily thinking in the silence.  
"We all better get to sleep, if we're to be ready tomorrow." Trowa said.  
"Amen to that!!" Duo yelled, running over and flicking the light switch, bounding back to bed, and jumping under the covers. After a bit, they all fell asleep, with Heero and Duo sharing the bed (very well, actually! In fact, Duo had cuddled up to Heero in his sleep!), Trowa on the sofa, Quatre not too far away, and Wufei in his 'fort'.  
  
_________________________________  
  
"The Chain"  
  
Part 1: I Go To Extremes…(Duo)  
Section 4 (Duo's Dream and Nightmare on Waking)   
  
"Call me a joker, call me a fool,  
Right at this moment I'm totally cool,  
Clear as a crystal, sharp as a knife,  
I feel like I'm in the prime of my life…"  
  
By Madame deLune  
__________________________________  
  
+++Dream Sequence! +++  
  
"Duo…" a woman's voice whispered.  
"W-what? Time to get up already?" Duo said, upon 'waking' in his dream.  
"Duo, how've you been? My! How you've grown!" the small brunette exclaimed.  
"Just who are you? What are you doing here? And how do you know my name?!?"  
"You don't know who I am?"  
"No, that's why I just asked you."  
"Oh, sorry, I get spacey sometimes…"  
"Well? You have some explaining to do, lady."  
"First off, I'm not just some lady, I'm your mother."  
"My mother?"  
"No, that's why I just said that."  
"OK, point taken."  
"And second, I'm dead."  
"Uh-huh…that's why I'm talking to you right now…OK whatever…"  
"Yes, I was killed in a raid on L02, right after I had taken you to the Maxwell Church."  
"Why did you take me there?"  
"I felt that I couldn't take care of you, so I found the best place, and it was with family, which was even better!"  
"I had family there?"  
"Yes, Father Maxwell, he's your uncle, your father's brother."  
"Hmm…. So, what's my name?"  
"Your birth name? Don't you like Duo?"  
"Yes, I like Duo…but I've always been curious."  
"Well, I called you Martin. Martin Wayne."  
"Martin?!? Martin Wayne ?!?!?! Sheesh! That's so totally uncool!"  
"There's nothing wrong with Martin Wayne."  
"OK whatever…I'd be a geek for sure…like Wu-man over there…" he said, pointing to Wufei and his 'fort'.  
"My, my, that boy does have problems, doesn't he…"  
"Yeah, but he's OK, all these guys are."  
CRASH!!! FLASH!!! (That's lightning)  
Duo woke up with a start, bolting upright in bed. 'A storm!' he thought to himself (how else can you think?). 'Why, oh why a storm?'  
He started running, out the door, stepping on Quatre's hand, and smacking into the door before running out into the hall. He ran to the only place where he could find salvation, the kitchen.  
Once there, he grabbed some milk from the 'fridge, and some cookies from a cupboard. Then he sat down and started to eat. And eat. And eat.   
CRASH!! FLASH!! (Lightning again)  
Duo started to whimper, like a lost little puppy, but continued to eat.  
CRASH!! FLASH!!  
Now, the tears flowed freely down his face, and yet, he kept eating.  
There came a hand on his shoulder. "Duo, what's wrong?"  
He looked up to see the owner of the hand and voice, (surprise, surprise) and it's Quatre.  
"Ah, nothing much really, I had a weird dream, so I thought I'd have a snack and think it out."  
"Why are you crying?" Quatre asked, concerned. "Has the storm scared you?"  
"Actually, yeah, it has…" Duo admitted, sheepishly.  
Having a seat next to Duo, Quatre started to eat too. "It's OK to be scared sometimes. If you want I'll stay here with you until you want to go back to the room."  
Duo smiled, "Thanks Quatre, you're the greatest! You won't tell anyone, will ya?"  
"Not if you don't want me to."  
"OK, good."  
"Everyone's scared of things sometimes, Duo, like me, afraid of snakes and spiders."  
Duo's eyes widened, "Really?"  
"Yeah, and we both know what Heero's afraid of!"  
"Uh-huh, Relena!" they both said at the same time, as they started to giggle.  
"Thanks, Quatre, you're like the little brother I never had." Duo said, placing his arm around Quatre's shoulders. Quatre simply smiled. Glancing about the room, Duo paused at the doorway, it appeared that there was a person leaning against the doorframe, watching the activities in the kitchen.  
"Quatre…do you see that?" Duo whispered, pointing to the door.  
Looking in that general direction, Quatre answered, "You mean that lady?"  
"Yeah."  
"What about her?"  
"Is she a short brunette with a big dopey grin on her face?"  
"Yes…"  
"Hello, Martin." She said, smiling, still in the doorway.  
"Who's Martin?" Quatre asked, confused.  
"My son." She replied.  
"And who would that be?"  
"Why, you're sitting with him right now!" Quatre turned to Duo, and saw his friend's face as white as a sheet. Just then, Quatre realized that he had no idea who this lady was, or how she got where she was.  
"Oh dear…" Quatre said, as he was making a new friend…the floor…  
  
  
Heero awoke when dawn broke, sitting up as the sun hit his eyes through the open window, he noticed that both Duo and Quatre were missing. Getting out of bed, he trod carefully around Trowa's outstretched hand and Wufei's 'fort'. Out in the hall, he realized he knew the only place where Duo'd be…the kitchen.  
Walking in the door, something caught his eye on the floor, it was Quatre! And Duo was just sitting there, staring at the door. Immediately going over to Duo (stepping over Quatre), he sat at the table, and placed his arms around Duo. "What's wrong, Duo?" he asked, softly.  
Waking up, Duo realized that Heero was 'hugging' him! "What are you doing out here? Why did you leave the bed?" Heero asked, releasing Duo from the embrace.  
"I couldn't sleep, so I came out here for a snack."  
"Then why is Quatre on the floor?"  
"He fainted."  
"Why?"  
"My mother came."  
Heero was puzzled at this…hadn't Duo's mother perished on L02 a long time ago? "Your…mother?"  
Duo nodded.  
"But isn't your mom dead? Duo?"  
"Martin."  
"Huh?"  
"She said that my real name is Martin Wayne."  
"So, I'll still call you Duo." Heero said, while trying to shake Duo out of this stupor he was in. 'Why won't he snap out of it?!?'  
"Yuy, Maxwell, what's Winner doing on the floor?" Wufei grumbled sleepily, stumbling onto the scene.  
Snapping out of the stare, Duo said, "He's still there?"  
"Yes, Maxwell, he's still there."  
Standing up, Duo went to the floor to check on his blonde comrade. "Quatre, my man, wake up…" Duo whispered softly into his friend's ear.  
"No, no…don't make me go…" was Quatre's reply…  
Heero went over to try to help…"Quatre! Your mission is to wake up!"  
"Mission denied…"  
Wufei, not wanting to miss out on the action, decided to participate. Picking up Quatre, Wufei slung him over his shoulder, and walked out of the kitchen with him! (Man, what won't he do when he's tired!) Carrying him back to the room, he set him gently on Heero and Duo's bed. Duo and Heero simply followed, surprised.   
Now awake, Quatre sat up in the bed, looking around. "What am I doing here?"  
"You had fainted in the kitchen, from what I here." Wufei explained.  
"I- I fainted?"  
Now in the room, Duo awoke Trowa, and Heero went to his bed.  
"Yes, Quatre, do you remember why?" Heero asked. Quatre just sat there, watching Duo try to wake Trowa (by dragging him off the sofa!).  
"Get up, you lazy bum!"  
"No, sleep…"  
"C'mon! Get up!!"  
"No, sleep now…"  
Wufei, Heero, and Quatre sat on the bed, watching. Smiling, yes, but watching still. Suddenly, Duo stopped yanking on Trowa's arm and a light bulb appeared above his head. Snapping his fingers, he said, "I know how to get him up!"  
Bending down, he whispered into Trowa's ear. Quick as lightning, Trowa was up on his feet, looking around the room, then, spotting Quatre, breathed a sigh of relief. Then, his expression quickly turning to anger, he grabbed Duo by the night shirt collar, and said, "*Never* do that to me *again!" The other pilots looked on in confusion.   
"What did you say to him, Maxwell?" Wufei asked.  
Duo shrugged his shoulders, "All I said was that Quatre needed him, and when doesn't he?"  
"…" was Heero's response.   
"Trowa, you know that'd be nonsense, if I ever really needed you, I'd make sure you got the message through either Heero or Wufei." Quatre replied, blushing.  
Standing up on his tiptoes, Duo clenched his hands into fists, and yelled, "What's that supposed to mean?"  
"Nothing, it means nothing at all…"  
"Yeah, right."  
"Seriously."  
"Sure."  
"Cut it out, Maxwell."  
"No! You!"  
"Duo, just shut up or…"  
"Or what?"  
"I'm going to kill you."  
"Ooh, I'm sooo scared! Remember, I shot you, twice no less!"  
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!  
"Trowa!" all the pilots yelled out.  
Still holding the knives, Trowa tried to look innocent. "Oops?"  
The now hanging-from-the-wall-by-knives Duo yelled, "Get me down!"  
Shaking their heads, the pilots reply was "No."  
A grumbling sound could be heard from Duo's general vicinity.   
"So why is Quatre the center of attention?" Trowa asked, turning to the bed.  
"Poor blondie here," Wufei gestured to Quatre, "he fainted."  
"Why did he faint?"  
"YO! OVER HERE!!" Duo yelled, still attached to the wall.  
"Shut up, Duo! We're trying to figure out why Quatre fainted!" Heero said, not even looking over at his braided buddy.  
"LET ME DOWN!!"  
"Shut up, or I'm going to kill you!"  
"How dare you threaten him in that manner!"  
"Duo, since when could you imitate a women's voice?" Heero asked, almost afraid to turn around.  
"Uh…I can't…"  
"Then who said that?"  
All eyes were on the doorway; there stood the same young woman from Duo's dream and the incident in the kitchen. Instead of the happy attitude she had before, now she had assumed a more hostile, angry mood.  
"T-that's why…" Quatre said, weakly, and fainted…again…  
"Oh dear, that poor boy, why does he keep doing that? Is he diabetic?" she asked, instantly switching from angry-rampage to maternal-caring.   
"No, woman, you scared him!" (Do I need to tell you who said that?)  
"Don't take that tone with me, young man!"  
"Whatever…"  
Turning to Heero, she asked, not too calmly, "Why did you threaten to kill my son? And why is he attached to the wall?"  
Trowa answered for Heero, who was sorta tongue-tied at the moment. "He always does that, threatens to kill him, and never does, it's just his way of showing affection."  
"So you'd never hurt my son?"  
This time, Heero answered for himself, "No, I couldn't do that, he's like a brother to me, if I'd hurt him, it'd be 100X worse than hurting myself."   
Looking away, she said, "Oh, alright…that's always a good thing. But that doesn't explain why he's attached to the wall!"  
Heero looked over at Trowa, who didn't attempt to hide the knives this time, "He needed to be quiet, we had to make sure that Quatre was alright."  
"So, why sharp knives? Weren't you afraid of hurting him?"  
"No, my sister is a knife-thrower in the circus, and she has trained me well."   



	2. The Chain, Chapter Two

  
"The Chain"  
  
Part Two: Sometimes it's a Bitch (Quatre)  
  
"Sometimes it's a bitch, sometimes it's a breeze  
Sometimes the picture just ain't what it seems  
you get what you want but it's not what you need  
Sometimes it's a bitch and sometimes.... it's a breeze"  
  
By Madame deLune  
_______________________________  
  
  
So, by this time, the boys had spent the night at the mansion, and are halfway through their second day. Quatre is still out from his latest faint, Trowa had been watching over him, Duo and Wufei were going to the kitchen to prepare for lunch, and Heero researching their encounter with the ghost of Duo's mother, Laura Maxwell.   
On his way out the door, Duo glanced back at Trowa and Quatre, "Hey, Trowa, why exactly did you put me on the wall like that? And didja have to do it so hard?" he wailed.  
Looking up from Quatre, Trowa replied, rubbing his temple, "You needed to be quieted, that's why. There's really no gentle way of throwing knives."  
"I'm just glad that the woman is gone!" Wufei said, "She was annoying, must be where you got it from, Maxwell."  
"Don't insult my mother like that!"   
"What're you gonna do about it?" Wufei snickered, pulling out a knife.  
Duo backed off; he'd had enough of knives for one day! "C'mon, we're gonna go make the food for lunch. And you'd better not make a pig of yourself, this food's going to have to last the week!" Wufei said, dragging Duo out by his braid.  
"Finally, it's quiet." Trowa said, to no one in particular.  
His only response was the clicking and clacking of the keys on Heero's laptop. "What are you doing, Heero?"  
"Researching paranormal activities, checking up on that ghost, ya know, the usual." Heero said, smiling.  
"Very funny," Trowa said, also smiling, "So, you're checking up on that ghost, or Martin Wayne Maxwell?"  
"Right now, the Maxwell Church Massacre."  
"Oh. And what have you found?"  
"Nothing yet. No names, nothing."  
"Check the lists of the dead, perhaps the authorities thought that the missing also included the dead."  
"Good idea…" 'I should have thought of that! I wish I could be more like Trowa, always thinking!'  
'Wow, I wish that I was more like Heero, he's able to hide his emotions so well, but he's been losing that ability lately. I want to be able to express myself like him, yet able to carry an air of mystique!' Trowa thought.  
"Hmm…I've got something!" Heero called out, excitedly.  
"What'd that be?" Trowa said, leaning over Quatre to see Heero's laptop.  
"I've got the lists of those killed in the massacre!"  
"And?"  
Checking the lists, Heero located Maxwell, but no Martin Wayne.  
"He's not there…"  
"Well," Trowa said, thinking, "Perhaps he went by the name Wayne Martin. People are known to switch around their middle and first names, look at the old American president, Dwight David Eisenhower."   
"You may be right, let me check." Heero said, checking the list for a Wayne Martin. After a few moments, Heero let out an excited squeak. "There's a Wayne Martin Maxwell!"  
"Is there a picture?"  
"Let me see………………yeah!" 'Holy shit! That's Duo!'  
"Heero, let me see the picture…" Trowa said, seeing the look on Heero's face.  
Taking the laptop from his normally calm friend, Trowa saw the picture on the screen. Those famous violet eyes and grinning face stared back at him, mockingly almost. 'That's our Duo alright!'  
"So, now what?" Heero asked, uncertain of his next action.  
"Now what, what?" a voice from the bed rung out.  
"Quatre! Welcome to the world of the living!" Heero called out.  
"Hey! Wufei! Duo, come here! Quatre's awake!" Trowa called to the cooks, in the kitchen.  
In the kitchen…  
"Maxwell! Stop eating all the sandwiches! We need those for lunch!" Wufei yelled, trying to grab the pile of sandwiches away from Duo, who was munching happily.  
"Mmmphh…muh-uh" [Translation…ummm…uh-uh] Duo tried to say, while at least three of the bread-made concoctions were in his mouth.  
"Hey! Wufei! Duo, come here! Quatre's awake!" a voice from a distance called.  
Stopping his pursuit of Duo, the sandwich thief, Wufei paused to hear the call. "Hey, Maxwell, do you hear that? Winner's awake!"  
"Yeah!" Duo yelled, running down the hall, smacking into as many things as possible…Not too far behind, Wufei also ran down the hall, but jumping over the things that Duo knocked over.  
"Maxwell! Are you trying to keep me as far behind you as possible?!?" Wufei called after Braid-Boy.  
Entering the room, Duo ran straight over to the bed, with Quatre sitting up, very confused, Trowa hugging the living daylights out of him, and Heero sitting there, just smiling. Looking up to see Duo, Quatre smiled as well, and almost blushing at the situation…"Yo, Trowa, he's awake, ya don't wanna kill him by choking him to death, do ya?" Duo said, trying to pry Trowa off of Quatre, who was still very, very confused. "Besides, I wanna hug him!" At this, Quatre blushed even more, and was even more dumbfuddled.   
"What's going on, everyone?"  
"You've been unconsice for over 8 hours! We've been worried about you buddy!" Duo said, hugging Quatre as hard as he could.  
"Oh, the ghost…right?"  
"Yes, but she's gone now." Heero said, trying to keep Duo from strangling Quatre.  
Getting off of Quatre, Duo hugged Heero, "And it's all thanks to Heero too! If he hadn't said some of the things he said, she would've thought that he was actually trying to kill me!"  
"Yes, and I meant every word I said too. Now, let me go!" Heero said, trying to pry Duo off of himself.  
"So, she's gone for good, as in, never-to-come-back?" Quatre asked, almost fearfully.  
"Yeah! Ain't that great?" Duo said, now holding onto Trowa, "Oh, and lunch is ready!"  
"Yeah, if you haven't eaten it all!" Wufei said, trying to drag Duo to the kitchen.  
"Could I eat in here? I'm still feeling a bit weak." Quatre said.  
"Sure, I'll stay in here with you." Trowa offered.  
"Oo-la la! Trowa and Quatre, sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G ---" Duo started, but was stopped when a jab in the stomach interrupted him. Wufei just grinned.  
"If that's what they want to do, then let them do that, alright Maxwell?" Wufei said, still dragging Duo to the kitchen.  
"Quatre and Trowa, in L-O-V-E!" Duo yelled from down the hall, since that was where Wufei had dragged him.  
"Trowa, you know you don't have to stay in here with me…" Quatre said, blushing slightly.  
"Do you mind if I stay in here too? I need to get some more research done on Laura Maxwell." Heero said, still typing on his laptop.   
"Sure, just let us know if you find anything." Trowa answered, holding onto Quatre's hand.  
"Who's Laura Maxwell? Duo's mother? The ghost?" Quatre asked, almost unaware that Trowa was holding his hand.  
"Yes, I'm trying to find a picture of her, just to prove that the spirit was hers."  
"So, you found other pictures that warrant further investigation?"   
"Yes, look at this, and tell me who you see." Heero said, showing Quatre his laptop, and the picture of Wayne Martin Maxwell.   
"That looks kinda like Duo, is that Martin?" Quatre asked, trying to explain this in his head.  
"Very good! Yes, this is Martin Wayne Maxwell. So, now I'm looking for pictures of Laura or anyone else in the Maxwell family."  
"Oh, alright."  
  
In the kitchen…  
"Maxwell! Stop eating those! I just finished them!"  
"NO! Mine!"  
"MAXWELL!"  
  
At the room…  
Wufei appeared at the door, with an unhappy look on his face "Lunch will be a bit late, Maxwell keeps eating the food. Perhaps, Yuy, will you come and control your boyfriend?"   
"Sure, I'll be there in a second. I just need to finish this up." Heero said, then realizing the implications of his words. "Um…" he started, but Wufei had already made his way back to the kitchen.  
"That's wonderful that you admit that, Heero." Quatre said, smiling supportively.   
"I didn't mean to."  
"Yes, we know, but still. You did nonetheless. Everyone knows how you feel about Duo, so why not bring it out in the open?" Trowa stated, almost grinning.  
Thinking of a good retort, Heero opened his mouth, and this came out, "Yes, so, what about your feelings? Shouldn't those be out in the open too?"  
This caught Quatre and Trowa by surprise, "What do you mean, 'feelings'?" Trowa asked, almost shocked.  
"Like you have for Quatre."  
"What does he mean, Trowa?" Quatre asked, not really hiding the hope in his voice.  
"N-nothing, he means nothing…"  
"Just tell him! You've been hiding for so long! You need to live by your feelings, Trowa; there's no other way! Otherwise, your life will be filled with regrets!"  
"That sounds oddly familiar, Heero."  
"Don't I know it! I'm scaring myself, but I need to go and check on Duo…and see if Wufei's taken out his knife yet…" Heero said, leaving the two to themselves.  
After Heero had left, Quatre turned to Trowa, and smiled. "What was all that about? Is there something that you need to tell me?"  
"Um, yes, but this would be hard for me to say, so bare with me, alright?" Trowa said, stuttering. 'I hope I can do this! God, any god, give me the strength and nerve I need to tell Quatre exactly what he means to me!' he thought, trying to give himself the courage needed to say what was on his mind.  
"Sure, I'll help in anyway I can, Trowa," Quatre said, "You're my best friend you know, I can wait. J"   
'How, oh how can I do this? I know, I could start off with, yes, you're my best friend too'  
"You're my best friend too, Quatre." 'Great, now what?'  
"That's wonderful, you don't know how much it means to me, just to hear you say even that! Although, I wish… um… never mind." Quatre said, turning beet red. 'How can I tell him that I love him? It's hard enough saying that he's my best friend! But, it's so much more than that, to me at least…'  
Trowa looked surprised; "You expected something else?" 'What does he want from me? Does he want me to say my true feelings, all of what I've had concealed?'  
"No, no, it's not that… not really…it's just that I--"  
"You what? You have some sort of horrible disease? You're in love with Duo? Relena?" Trowa joked, trying to ease some of the stress on Quatre. 'I love you too…'  
Quatre giggled, "How'd you guess? Relena and I have been together for a while now, that's what got Dorothy so angry, enough to stab me!"  
Trowa's eyebrow arched in surprise, "But I've been with Dorothy!"  
"You've funny, Trowa. That's one thing I love about you."  
Leaning in close to his friend, Trowa asked, "What else do you love about me?"   
Leaning in even closer, Quatre said, "Everything. I love you." 'Wow! I did it!'  
"You know what, Quatre? I love you too." Trowa said, edging even closer to his friend, close enough for their lips to meet.  
'Oh, Allah! Thank you!' Quatre thought happily, savoring the moment.  
'Whichever god is up there, thank you so much!' Trowa thought, also trying to make the most out of this peaceful time…or so it was thought…  
Pulling away, Quatre opened his eyes and saw Trowa just sitting there, with the biggest smile that he'd ever seen on his clown friend's face. "Wow…"   
"What? Did I do something wrong?" Trowa said, his face filled with concern, instead of happiness.   
Smiling, Quatre said, "No, everything was so right! That was just… um… well…"  
"Was that your first kiss?"  
Blushing, Quatre answered, "Well, yes…"  
Putting his hand up to Quatre's now red cheeks, Trowa softly stroked his friend's face, he whispered, "Don't worry, that was mine too."  
Standing in the doorway, this entire sight was seen (and recorded on video camera!) by Duo, Wufei, and Heero.   
Duo, almost to the point of tears, said, "I'm so happy for you guys!"  
Looking up from each other, it was as if a bubble had been broken, breaking open their own little universe for the world to see. "Um, so, now what, Trowa?" Quatre asked, scooting away from his world's-most-emotionless-clown- boyfriend.   
"No, no, don't do that, we'll leave, we just came to tell you that lunch is ready." Wufei said softly.   
"That's quite fine, I'm actually pretty hungry." Trowa said, "Where's the food?"  
"Well, here's some!" Duo said, walking over to the two on the bed, "Some top-notch sandwiches!" Duo placed a tray on top of Quatre's lap, on top of which were some glasses and bread with nothing but air in the middle.  
"Isn't there supposed to be something in between the two slices of bread?" Quatre asked, sweat dropping.   
"Not in the famous Maxwell Bread sandwiches!" Duo said, practically shouting.   
Looking to Trowa, then Heero, Quatre said, "Well, alright, might as well give it a try!" He then picked up the "Maxwell Bread sandwich" and began to eat. "Wonderful!" he exclaimed. 'That ought to make him feel better!'  
"That's great! Now everyone have one!" Duo said, passing them around to his friends.  
And so, they all sat around, eating the two slices of bread. Munching with mock happiness. After finishing the bread, Heero said, "Duo, I found something on the Internet that I think you might want to see."  
"And what would that be?"  
"You."   
Running over to the bed, Duo grabbed Heero's laptop. "What's the password for this thing?" he said, trying to access the OS. (OS is Operating System, like Windows 2000 or Windows 3.1, etc.)   
Slapping his forehead, Heero replied, "Take a guess, Einstein."   
After about a half-hour of trying, Duo still couldn't figure it out. "What is it?" he whined.  
"Bring it here, and I'll put it in, Maxwell." Wufei said, trying to be helpful?   
"How would you know?" Duo and Heero asked in unison, surprised.  
"You think that I haven't figured out how your mind works, Yuy?"  
"I, um, well, I don't know." Heero stuttered.  
Taking the laptop over to Wufei, Duo gave it to his Chinese friend, and within a second, the correct password was entered into the system, and it started to boot up.  
"How did you do that?" Duo asked, astonished.  
"It was easy, Maxwell."  
"Then how come I couldn't do it?"  
"You just answered your own question."  
"I did? How?"  
"Never mind, just give it to Yuy!"  
Duo did so, and Heero quickly pulled up the picture of Martin Wayne Maxwell. "Wow, that's me?" Duo asked, almost scared.  
Heero nodded.  
"So, that ghost was actually my mother?"  
"Yes, Duo, that was your mother." Heero explained, "And I'm working on finding a picture of her on here too, just to be completely sure."  
"Alright, I'll wait, I guess." And he did, while Heero searched. And searched. And searched.   
"It appears that there isn't a picture of Laura Maxwell, but there is someone else though."  
"Who would that be?" Duo asked, anxious.  
"An Ellen Marie Miller. She's 18 years old, and she appears to be related to you in some way." Heero stated, tilting the screen so that Duo could see it.  
The face that stared back at him was too much like his to not be related! "She has your hair, Duo, and that nose!" Quatre said, also looking over Duo's shoulder.  
"And the eyes, even though a different shade, are the same shape, and the same expression." Trowa said, putting in his opinion.  
"Could she my older sister? Cousin?" Duo asked, to thin air.  
"Who knows, but lets get Quatre some time to get some clothes on, so we can go and investigate the entire house." Heero said, trying to scoot Wufei and Duo out of the room.  
Almost out the door, Heero turned back and asked Trowa, "You coming? Or do you want to stay and make sure that he's OK?"  
"Do you want me to stay, Quatre? I can help pick your outfit." Trowa said, grinning. (How often do you see that?)  
"I can pick my own outfits," Quatre said, also grinning, "remember last time?"  
'The leather!' "Of course I remember, but how about something somewhat normal for you?"  
"Alright, I'll be down in a minute." Quatre said, going over to his bag. Trowa had gone out the door and shut it behind him softly.  
"Hmm… so what outfit to wear today?" the blonde started to himself, pulling several neatly folded outfits out of his light blue embroidered bag. "I know, I'll wear my blue outfit today! Blue's not a bad color on me…" And so, he changed into a light blue T-shirt and jeans with a white blouse type thing over it.   
  
Walking into the receiving room, Quatre noticed something was, well, wrong. It was quiet… too quiet. 'Wufei and Duo should be fighting, or something! What's wrong?' he thought, panicking. Looking around the room, he could see none of the guys, only a blonde head over the edge of the plush leather sofa. His thought process went like this: Heero = dark brown; Duo = chestnut brown; Trowa = medium brown; Wufei = black; Me = blonde. "How does this work?" he said out loud. Slapping himself on the forehead, the realization hit him, this wasn't one of the Gundam Boys. 'Then who is it?'  
Edging closer to the mysterious blonde head, Quatre asked, "Hello, who are you?"  
Turning around, the woman took first notice of him, "I might ask the same for you," she started, "but I know who you are."  
"How do you know who I am, and I don't know who you are?"  
"Because, dear Quatre, I am your mother." She smiled, very sweetly, just like Quatre.   
Thunk (Quatre hitting the floor…damn, he does that too much…)  
"Oh dear, I was afraid this would happen…" the woman identified as Quatre's mother said, getting up and tending to her son.  
Running to the sound of the thunk, the rest of the boys rushed to see Quatre on the floor, with a blonde woman kneeling over him, checking his pupils (to see if he had a concussion).   
"Um… are you guys seeing this?" Duo asked, astounded…  
Trowa, Wufei, and Heero nodded, also dumbfounded. "Who are you?" Trowa asked, also kneeling down to Quatre.  
When she looked up to respond to him, Trowa immediately guessed who she was, "You're his mother, right?"  
"Why, yes, I am. How did you guess?" she said, surprised.  
"I know Quatre pretty well, and you really look like him. Too much to be one of his sisters." Trowa stated, pretty sure of himself.  
"Well, you are indeed a very smart boy. I'm glad Quatre has friends like you." Quaterina said, smiling, her blue eyes glistening.   
"Well, I'm his friend too!" Duo wailed, trying to get some attention.  
"Shut up, Maxwell." Wufei said, drawing out his katana.   
Looking over to the disagreement, Quaterina immediately saw the blade. "No. I will not have such weapons near Quatre, even though I am sure that he has used such weapons himself."  
'She's a smart lady. Must be where Quatre gets it from.' Heero thought, trying to make some sense of the situation.  
"Alright." Wufei resigned, putting his katana back into its hiding spot.   
"Why are you here? Is there something that you need to tell Quatre?" Trowa asked, because he remembered that Duo's mom had come to tell him of his true past.  
Quaterina looked surprised. She was definitely related to Quatre! They reacted exactly alike! "You really are a smart boy. You seem to know a lot more than you put on. Yes, I needed to tell him of arrangements made when he wasn't even born, even though it might hurt him for a while, it's best if he knows." 'What exactly is his relationship to my Quatre?' "Oh! I've been so rude! I'm sorry, I didn't even introduce myself! I'm Quaterina Winner."  
"I'm Heero Yuy."  
"I'm Duo Maxwell!" the aforementioned boy said, jumping up and down to exaggerate his point.  
"I am Wufei."  
"And I am Trowa Barton." Trowa said, outstretching his hand.  
Taking it, Quaterina said, "How well do you know my son, Trowa?"  
Trowa's face turned red, bright red.   
Saving him from answering, Quatre chose that moment to return from his little trip to meet the floor. Sitting up, Quatre rubbed the back of his head, trying to see if there was a bump. "What happened?"  
"You're going to be alright. I'm just glad we came when we did." Trowa said, hugging his little blonde friend. This sight nearly caused Wufei to fall down in shock. He really hadn't expected that!   
Duo turned to Heero, "Why don't you ever hug me?"  
Looking over at his braided baka (idiot), Heero said, "Do you need me to?"  
"No, I suppose not…" Duo said, looking kinda disappointed.   
Heero grasped that moment and hugged Duo, albeit awkwardly. After the momentary embrace, Heero went over to Trowa and whispered that Quaterina was still there. "Oh, I forgot." Trowa said, releasing the little blonde from his clutches.   
Surprised by this scene of obvious affection, Quaterina said, "May I talk to my son? Alone?"  
"Yes, ma'am!" Wufei (?) said, saluting smartly and dragging Heero, Duo, and Trowa out of the room.   
"That's odd…" Quatre started, watching his Chinese friend's actions. "What got into him? Duo's mother perhaps?"   
"Quatre, there's something I need to tell you. Why don't we go and sit on the sofa?" Quaterina said, softly.   
"Sure, mother." Quatre said, taking a seat next to his mother on the big poofy sofa. "What do you need to tell me?"  
"You do realize, dear, that you come from a very well-to-do family. And because we must keep our family name going, things happen to cause certain arrangements."  
This piqued Quatre's interest. 'Like what kind of arrangements?'  
"Go on." Quatre insisted politely.   
"Well, since you are our only son, your father and I arranged you a wife."  
Quatre face vaulted. 'Just when I get with Trowa, this had to come!'  
"And just who might she be?"  
"You might know her, she is probably very well known."  
"And?"  
"She is also a princess. Because that's the kind of girl you deserve."  
"A… princess?"  
"Yes."  
"Is she Relena Peacecraft?"  
"You know her! That's a relief! How wonderful! I thought that everything had to be started from scratch!"  
"Relena Peacecraft…" he sighed to himself. 'Heero should be happy… now she won't stalk him.'  
"Yes. I'm surprised that you didn't know about this marriage thing, even Milliardo knew about it!"  
"Mother, Milliardo is gone. And since Father is dead, and the sisters didn't know, how could I have found out?"  
"Why, the King of course!"  
"He's also dead."  
"Well, that's a predicament."  
"Yes, and besides, I have found someone already." Quatre said, hoping that he'd have the courage to tell his mother who it was.  
"Really? Who? No wait, don't tell me, it's Dorothy Catalonia, right? She's also a very nice girl."  
"Mother, she ran me through with a fencing saber."  
"Oh dear. Well, who's this wonderful girl you've fallen in love with?"  
"Not a girl, Mother."  
A muffled squeak emerged from Quaterina's mouth. "A… boy?"  
"If it's not a girl, that only leaves boys or horses, mother. And I don't like horses all too much."  
Wufei, listening from the other side of the door, got a nosebleed.  
"Dear, what about Relena? What will she do?"  
"Continue to stalk Heero, I guess."  
"Then who have you fallen in love with? Don't tell me that Wufei fellow! A Chinese! That is so dishonorable for you to be in love with that, that, that, has been!"  
"No, Mother, it's not Wufei."  
"Then, that braided boy? You two seem to get on well enough. Is he rich?"  
"No, Mother, he's an orphan."  
"Alright, then Heero! It's got to be him!"  
"No, not him, either."  
"Then, that Trowa boy?"  
"Yes."  
Quaterina fainted, falling gracefully onto the sofa.  
"Mother!" Quatre yelled, as she disappeared into nothing.  
"Quatre…" she whimpered as she faded away.  
Coming out from behind the door, Wufei, Duo, Trowa, and Heero all had looks of concern on their faces. "Quatre, we heard everything." Trowa said.  
"I know… I heard Duo chuckling when I said that bit about the horses! Can you believe I said that?" Quatre said, beaming.  
"Nope, but you did!" Trowa replied, "You've been hanging around Duo too much!"  
"Hey! I resent that!" Duo yelled, trying to prove that he doesn't have a foul mouth… then he started to yell all the cuss words he knows…  
"So, you're in love with Barton?" Wufei asked, almost scared of the answer.  
"Yes… I do believe I am…" Quatre said, smiling very widely.  
  
END PART 2  



	3. The Chain, Chapter Three

PART 3: CONCLUSION  
  
"Good bye, Jean-Luc,   
I'm going to miss you,  
You had such potential,  
But then again,   
All good things must come to an end…"  
  
Q from "All good things…"  
_________________________________  
  
Nothing much happened the rest of the week, except for the fact that Wufei and  
Duo fought the entire time. Now, we join them on their last day and night.  
  
Waking up as the sun rose, Heero looked around the room, checking his  
surroundings. 'Hmm… Wufei's in his fort, Trowa and Quatre asleep on the   
floor and Duo…' he thought, looking down. He saw a pair of arms circled   
around his waist. Pulling up the sheets, he also saw a braid to match. 'Oh,   
Duo… how'd you get to be so cute?' Lifting the braid, Heero saw Duo sleeping,  
looking not unlike a peaceful kitten. Heero smiled slightly. "So, you do love   
him." A voice from his right whispered in his ear.   
Looking over, Heero saw Trowa leaning over his shoulder, grinning.  
"Did you ever doubt?"  
"No. We're more alike than you'd think, Mr. Perfect Soldier," Trowa started,  
"Because I'm a circus performer, I can wear the mask. All of us do. Although  
not as literally as I do. Duo does, he can't be that happy all of the time. Even  
Quatre wears it sometimes. We are all The Stranger to ourselves."  
"Bravo! Longest thing I've ever heard you say. But you're right, we all do wear  
the mask, and we are a lot alike." Heero admitted.   
"Wanna go and get some coffee?"  
"Sure. I'll need it to wake up." So, Heero kissed Duo lightly on the forehead  
and followed Trowa to the kitchen, where the uni-banged one made some coffee,  
and tea for Quatre, who had woken up just as his tea was done.  
"Good morning, little one." Trowa said, holding out a cup of tea for Quatre,  
who was now blushing.  
"You've never called me that before…"  
Heero, seeing the relationship before him, asked the two, "How did you two get   
to be so close in such a short amount of time?" And then under his breath, he  
muttered, "Got any pointers?"  
This surprised Quatre and Trowa, who by now had sat down at the table, with  
Quatre next to Heero and Trowa next to him. "We actually have been this close  
for a long time, it's just now that we realize what our closeness implies." Trowa  
said, smiling.  
"Why, do you want hints? Aren't you close enough to Duo as it is?" Quatre  
asked, placing his hand on Heero's shoulder.  
"He and I have been close for a long time too, but we haven't done anything with  
it… At least, not exactly what you have."  
"Don't worry about it too much, Heero. If things are meant to happen, they will.   
Everything is about Destiny and Fate." Quatre said, a bit groggily.  
"How can you talk about 'Fate and Destiny'? With all that's happened here?"  
Heero asked, almost a little angry.  
"We were meant to meet those women, that's that. It's all Karma." Wufei said,  
entering the room. He rubbed his eyes and continued, "Why, asking about the  
ghosts, or you and Duo?"  
Trowa smiled slightly, 'How can Wufei always be so right about everything?'  
"Yes, he was asking about Duo."  
"That's what I thought." Wufei said, grinning sleepily, "So, you want to get  
close to Maxwell? We'll help ya."  
Red lights hummed and blinked over Heero's head, this didn't seem right…  
"And how exactly are you going to do that?"  
"Like this-" Wufei started, pulling Trowa, Quatre and Heero into a football-type  
huddle. Every so often, we'd hear "No Way!" or "I'm not going to do that!!!"  
from any of the guys, except for Wufei, who tried to quiet any loud member of  
the party.  
  
10 minutes later…  
"To get Duo, I'd have to do that? Dress like a chicken and peck at the ground?"  
Heero said, almost afraid to hear the logic behind it.  
"Yes, dress up like a chicken, and peck at the ground! It makes perfect sense  
you see." Wufei stated, taking a not-unlike Washuu type pose.  
Quatre put up his hand in question, "How exactly does it make sense again?"  
"If Yuy is a chicken, Maxwell will either be worried or become aroused, I don't  
know which."  
"I'm not sure I want that…" Heero said, more than a little concerned about  
Wufei's sanity. "And why would you know that?"  
"Because Maxwell and I have shared many nights of 'Charades' and he always   
is a chicken."  
"Oh." Heero said, understanding the logic, 'Wow… so if I act like a chicken,   
I'll get Duo!"  
"Why were you two playing Charades? Why wasn't I included?" Quatre said,  
holding up a trophy that he pulled from Closet Void. Upon closer inspection,   
the trophy reads, "Quatre Raberba Winner- 1st place finisher in the Colony L4   
Charades Contest"  
"THAT'S why!"  
"Don't hate me because I'm a wonderful actor. Hate me because I'm cute."   
Quatre said, sticking out his tongue. Pulling it back in, he smiled, "Seriously,  
why were you guys playing Charades?"  
"You were gone on missions, and he and I were bored. I said "Go Fish", but he  
wanted Candyland. So, we decided on Charades."  
The same thoughts echoed through the minds of Heero, Trowa and Quatre, 'Go  
Fish? Candyland?'   
Seeing the AnimeSweatDrops, Wufei said defensively "I like Candyland."  
This caused even more AnimeSweatDrops…  
Shaking his head to clear the thoughts of Wufei and Duo playing Candyland,  
Heero spoke up, "When are we going to put this plan into action? And where are  
we going to get a chicken suit?"  
Now, Wufei surprised everyone by pulling a chicken suit from Closet Void.  
"A game of Candyland, $16.  
A chicken suit, $30.  
  
The look on Trowa's, Quatre's, and Heero's faces…  
  
Price- no… about ONE MILLION DOLLARS!" Wufei finished, placing his   
pinkie to his lips.  
"Um, yeah, Wufei, let's just get this over with…before I have to kill you."   
Heero said, placing his hand near the elastic band of his spandex shorts…you  
never know what he keeps in there…  
"Sure…put it on before Maxwell wakes up. Then we'll all go to the attic, and  
when you two are done then come and get us." Wufei said, pulling Quatre and  
Trowa in the general direction of the attic entrance. They didn't protest much,  
all they did was follow Wufei and look at each other with puppy-dog eyes.  
  
About 30 minutes of trying, Heero finally struggled enough to get the leg of the  
chicken suit. "Damn Wufei and Damn Chicken suit! Damn my infernal  
infatuation and love of Duo Maxwell!"  
  
"What was that, Heero?" A certain braided baka whispered in Heero's ear…  
Whirling around, Heero came face to face, nose to nose, almost lip to lip with the  
Damned Duo Maxwell. "Putting on a chicken suit? How quaint… but I fear  
for your sanity… you've been hanging around with Wufei and Trowa too long."   
He smiled, mockingly, and yet, seemingly seductively. "Do you want some help  
into it, or out?"  
All of this took Heero completely by surprise. Really.   
"What did you hear me say?"  
"Damn this and Damn that…"  
"Oh, so you heard everything?"  
"Even Wufei and the chicken suit."  
"How were you even up? You normally sleep in until noon!"  
"Uh, Heero, look at your watch…"  
Heero did, and saw that his struggle with the chicken suit must have lasted  
longer than he thought….it was 3:00!   
"Really, Heero…" Duo started, helping Heero out of the suit, "You're the  
Perfect Soldier, and yet you can't even put on a chicken suit."  
"Hey! I wouldn't even be putting it on if it weren't for you! So don't mock me!"  
Heero said, pulling his leg out, crossing his arms.  
"You wanted me to fall hopelessly in love with you, right?"  
"No…"  
"Then what did you want?"  
"Just for you to give me a chance…"  
"Well, I must give you points for creativity, what, with the chicken and all."   
Duo said, turning away, "But if a shot is all you want, then I guess I can give it  
to ya."  
  
A pounding was heard from above their heads, "Shall we tell them to come   
down?"  
Heero shook his head, "No, I don't think that Quatre and Trowa want to come  
down…that's Wufei, pounding for them to stop."  
"How are you so sure?"  
"I'm the Perfect Soldier, remember?"  
"Oh, I see. Well, let's make sure they stay up there a little longer, shall we?"  
Duo said, running to the door to the attic, placing a couple of chairs in the  
way…and some other very heavy things.  
"You're bad."  
"So? Anyway…since I'm giving you a chance, you need to give Relena a chance."  
Heero started gagging. "R-Relena? No! What makes you think that I'm  
interested in her?"  
"I don't know…she is pretty cute."  
"So, looks aren't everything, and besides, I was taught to live by my emotions.   
And I intend to do exactly that." Heero said, grabbing Duo and pulling him   
close, "Starting now." And they kissed. The End.  
  
  
Epilogue:  
  
So, The G-Boys left the mansion empty handed, with no proof whatsoever of the  
ghosts. Well, not empty handed, literally… Heero had Duo's hand and Quatre  
had Trowa's. Wufei just bounced along, happy that he helped to bring these   
people, his friends, to each other and happiness. So, Heero and Duo end up as a  
happy couple, as do Quatre and Trowa. And you don't want to know what   
Wufei does with that chicken suit, when he's watching the tape of Quatre and   
Trowa… 


End file.
